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THE AMERICAN CLUB JAN / FEB 2018
Dear Members,
Happy New Year and Gong Xi Fa Cai! I hope you all
enjoyed a well-deserved break over the holidays and
got to spend plenty of time with family and loved ones.
Though 2018 has begun, our festive season continues as
we celebrate the Year of the Dog in February. According
to the Chinese zodiac, the Year of the Dog will be a year
of action – and that certainly holds true for The Club.
As you read this, we are in the process of obtaining
our Temporary Occupation Permits for Phase 3 of the
redevelopment. Trust me when I say that everyone is
working as hard as they can to open these spaces as
soon as possible. 48 official redevelopment-related
committee meetings (Project Control Group / Tender
Sub-Committee / Project Stakeholder Group) were held
in 2017. This does not include the hundreds of onsite and
offsite meetings with designers, contractors, consultants
and vendors by breakout groups and management. Our
Member volunteers, committees, management, and the
consultant team have indeed worked (and are working)
tirelessly to improve The Club for everyone’s benefit.
Please do thank a volunteer next time you see him/her –
your acknowledgement means more than you will know.
If you have looked out the viewing windows or watched our
redevelopment timelapse video recently, you will notice
that our spaces are coming together and the new Scotts
Road building is starting to look like a Clubhouse. I was on
a site visit not too long ago and got excited when I saw
tiles already in the pool and on the deck. Our Secretary,
Diane Knox, ever-dedicated to the redevelopment and
safety for all, even gave the new poolside tiles a barefoot
spin to ensure they aren’t slippery!
This year also marks The Club’s 70th anniversary and
we plan to celebrate in style. This historical milestone is
especially significant when you consider the massive
undertaking of the redevelopment during this time. With
this progression, we hope to solidify The Club’s future for
decades to come; but this year, we’ll be rolling out special
Club-wide events and promotions to commemorate.
Keep your eyes peeled.
I recently got a question from a Member that made me
pause for a moment and reflect – “What has surprised you
FROM THE
President
since becoming the President?” It’s a great question. The
thing that constantly amazes me, now that I am privy to
more behind-the-scenes action, is the sheer volume of
day-to-day operations that take place within The Club.
The American Club sees more transactions in a month
then many other clubs do in a year. As an example:
• Have I seen you in line for dry cleaning? Essentials
handled over 90,000 articles of clothing for pressing,
laundering and dry cleaning in 2017.
• sên Spa, while tucked away in a quiet corner of The
Club, is a hive of activity with over 12,000 hair services,
6,000 waxing services, nearly 5,000 massages, and
almost 12,000 manicures and pedicures done last
year. When I am in sên it often feels relaxed and quiet
– where is everyone and how do the staff maintain the
level of tranquility we all luxuriate in?
• Members don’t just want to be pampered, they also
want to be healthy and fit. We see quite a bit of activity
happening at the Gym. An astounding 7,493 personal
training sessions were conducted and 13,652 people
participated in our group fitness classes last year.
• Our Members are a proud lot and often bring guests
in to enjoy The Club – in 2017, over 24,500 guests
were signed in at the Front Desk, each with a warm
welcome.
Our staff manage this incredible level of usage with
efficiency, warmth and a smile, often remembering our
names and our preferences. We are truly fortunate to
have them, and I am constantly reminded that we really
do have the best staff in Singapore.
There is plenty of action in store for us all this year – a
new Clubhouse, new facilities, new menus, new names
and more. Plato once said, “The beginning is the most
important part of the work”, and as we begin 2018, I
would say we are indeed at the crucial start of the work
– the work that will lead to future enjoyment of the new
pools, of eating delicious new food, of getting spoiled
with new services at the spa…hopefully this kind of work
will never end!
Kristen